[allAfrica.com] Warri Women Send SOS to Obasanjo, Kick Against Ward Creation in Delta Vanguard (Lagos) NEWS August 6, 2004 Posted to the web August 6, 2004 The Warri Women Consultative Assembly has sent a Save our Soul (SOS) letter to President Olusegun Obasanjo in protest against the creation of new electoral wards in Delta State. The SOS, dated August 4 and signed by Chief Rita-Lori Ogbebor, the Igba of Warri Kingdom and Chairman, Warri Women Consultative Assembly was entitled "An SOS to President Olusegun Obasanjo: Governor Ibori fans the embers of Ethnic Conflict Again in Delta State with the Creation of New Electoral Wards." According to the Warri Women Consultative Assembly, "the recent announcement by the Delta State Government on Thursday 22nd July 2004 on Delta State Radio and Television proposing the creation of new electoral wards has already started to generate discord amongst various ethnic nationalities and has the potential to cause a breach of the peace especially in the three Warri Local Government Council Areas. "We all know that the creation of arbitrary wards and Local Government Council areas is always a sore point in the country especially in Delta State, where ethnic conflicts have become increasingly rife. It is pertinent to note that the creation of new wards or/and Local Government Council Areas has been the major cause of the almost intractable Warn crisis. "Thus, against the background of the emergent fragile peace now coming to the Warn area, it is unbelievable that the Delta State Government can be proposing the creation of new wards at a time like this. "The Delta State Government has firstly, taken an unconstitutional step and has not followed due process. It is absolutely wrong for the Delta State Government through its Independent State Electoral Commission to arbitrarily divide land space and create wards without inputs from the people who inhabit such land spaces. "Secondly, it is the responsibility of the people to ask their elected councillors to table their requests for ward creation before their councils' legislative arms, after a referendum, before taking it to the Sate House of Assembly which will in turn present such a request to other relevant bodies before wards are finally created. "Thirdly, the present groundswell of opinion against the arbitrary and unconstitutional creation of wards in the whole state vindicates our position. The case of the three Warri Local Government Council areas, where Governor Ibori unilaterally stopped council elections from taking place in March this year is even more bewildering. Which elected representatives, chairmen and councillors did Governor Ibori consult within the three Warri Local Government Council areas before he created the new wards? Such a move is bound to engender ethnic conflict in Warri again. "Moreso, the issue of ward delineation/Local Government creation in Delta State is still pending in the Court of Appeal in Abuja so why is the Ibori Government engaging in committing illegalities such as creation of wards? "The President should urge Governor Ibori to focus on the onerous task of looking after the welfare of the people -- provision of food, shelter, good health delivery system, good education and social amenities and infrastructural improvement etc. "Despite the billions of naira that comes to Delta State from the Federation account and the derivation fund, Delta State has nothing to show for all this. Poverty smells in every corner of the state. The youths are always restive because they are not gainfully employed and Governor Ibori wants to exacerbate the situation by creating wards again. "Governor Ibori should concern himself with alleviating the suffering of the people rather than creating another situation for blood letting, burning of houses, kidnappings and ethnic cleansing. All the puerile decisions about creating development committees, wards/local government councils are all diversionary tactics by a drowning government. "The more than four billion naira allocated to Delta State every month from the revenue derivation fund is more than enough for Deltans to live above poverty level. The people no more have the time for raw politics and political maneuvering; enough is enough. We will not sacrifice any of our children any more for a vision less, greedy, corrupt and heartless leadership who will protect their own children while they sacrifice others for their own ambition. "Finally, we implore Mr. President to ask Governor James Ibori to uphold the constitution he swore to protect. The matter of creation of wards, development committees, local government councils are all before the courts. The Delta State Government must not be an embodiment of lawlessness which breeds violence and disorder. "Mr. President, the generality of Deltans believe that the Ibori Government has been the greatest beneficiary of the Warri crisis, as people will not be in the necessary frame of mind to ask about accountability during such crisis. "The emergence of permanent peace in the area will not be conducive for a crisis loving government, so by creating wards, development committees, local government council areas, the Ibori government's intention is to induce another scenario for ethnic conflicts. "We are praying that Mr. President will take urgent steps to call Governor Ibori to order before he plunges the whole state into another orgy of violence and mayhem through the creation of arbitrary electoral wards especially in the three Warri Local Government Council Areas where the government has deliberately disenfranchised the electorate."   =============================================================================   Copyright © 2004 Vanguard. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). =============================================================================